10 Ways to Create Multiple Streams of Income

1. Become a Subject Matter Expert.

Use the knowledge and expertise that you have gained through the years to help develop and maintain certifications. CompTIA is always looking for Subject Matter Experts (SME’s) to help maintain their current exams and develop new ones. Look at other companies offering certifications and check out their exam development procedures. If you have expertise in those areas then contact them. Most companies pay decent stipends to their SME’s, plus some fringes benefits. CompTIA normally pays $300 per day to SME’s and gives a free voucher for any of their exams.

2. Write Technical Articles in areas of your expertise.

If you like to share your technical knowledge, or any kind of knowledge, and like to write, then look for websites, blogs, niche sites, etc. that are looking to hire content writers. Linux Journal put a call out to writers a few months ago and they are still recruiting (as far as I know). There are many well known company sites, as well as popular niche sites, that are always looking for quality content and will pay per article. You can also peruse Elance (more below) for opportunities.

You can also try the revenue sharing type websites, but be warned that it takes a long time to ever see any money, unless you get lucky. InfoBarrel is a legit up and coming site that shares 75% of Google adsense revenue generated from your articles. You can also sign up with Chitika and Amazon Associates for additional income. InfoBarrel also hosts monthly contests where you can win Amazon giftcards up to $100. These types of sites can generate income over time but it requires a lot of up front work and SEO.

3. Elance

Elance is a large online freelancing website where you can either hire a contractor or sell your services. In order to bid for jobs you can sign up for free or purchase a monthly subscription. The free subscription allows you to choose one category (example: Web and Programming) and allows you to submit a certain amount of proposals per month in that category only. If you want to submit proposals in more category, or would like to submit more proposals per month, then you need to upgrade to their paid services starting at $10 per month. Elance is a great way to get some extra contract work. You can get some extra work programming, writing, being a virtual assistant, offer remote tech services, and just about any other area that you have expertise in. Elance is a very well known site and offers its own escrow payment system to prevent problems.

4. Create Niche Sites

Depending on how you go about this, you may or may not need to have web development experience. The key is to find a good niche product or service and create a website around it. It takes SEO and keyword research, as well as market knowledge. If you can draw some decent traffic to the site you can make some extra money through Google adsense, advertisers, and other affiliates. This is definitely an area you would need to research before diving in.

5. Web Hosting and Offsite/Cloud backup (reselling)

Reselling web hosting and data backup plans (cloud backups) are a little easier to break into, though they require sales skills and perhaps money to maintain. However, once you get some clients and cover your costs this is a great way to make some passive income. Normally once clients are signed up for web hosting or data backup there isn’t much maintenance besides initial setup. Check out Hostgatorfor their reselling plans. I partner with Gillware Data Services for data recovery and they have cloud based data backup plans as well. Mozy is another good one. There are plenty of companies that offer backup reselling plans.

6. Partnerships/Affiliates

Partnerships and affiliate programs are great ways to generate some extra cash. This can range from simple affiliate links on your website where companies pay you a percentage of products that are purchased (Amazon Associates, software companies, referrals, etc) to partnership deals where you contract with a person or set up a referral fee for business sent to them. An example would be web design. You may be a great tech but have no clue about website design and creation, but you would like to cash in on the web development demand. If you know a web developer that’s trustworthy you can set up a partnership agreement with them. You can either refer the potential customer and get a percentage of the deal, or subcontract it out to your partner (though you will be in charge of the project if you go this route, so beware). If there is a market you want to tap into or if you notice customers asking for services or products that you don’t offer, see if you can partner with somebody who does offer them. Done correctly this can make some nice extra cash while also building h3 business relationships.

7. Teaching/Tutoring

Again, do you like to share your knowledge? How about teaching it? You can either offer private tutoring or look for openings at local tech colleges or community centers. Teach any subject that you have expertise in. Check local laws for any certifications or credentials that may be needed depending on what you are teaching.

8. Expand vertically/sideways

James Gilbert wrote a nice article about expanding your business sideways. If you are looking to supplement your core business with some additional services check out this article.
https://www.technibble.com/grow-your-computer-business-sideways/

9. Create Mobile Apps

Whether you have programming experience or not you can get into app development. Research and due diligence is necessary, but there is a potential to make some serious cash in this area. If you know how to develop apps for the iPhone or Android platforms and have the time, try creating an app and market it. A one time creation could generate some nice residual income for you. However, if you don’t want to take that risk, offer your services on Elance or in other venues. There are many people who don’t know how to program who will pay to have these apps developed. Of course, you can hire out as well. It will cost some cash up front but save a lot of time. You could then spend more of your time marketing the app to make it successful.

10. Buy/invest in a business

This is probably the most expensive way to gain extra income, and could be the riskiest if you don’t know what you are doing. However, it’s also considered the least riskiest way to enter business ownership. I am mentioning it here assuming that you already have a business and are looking for ways to supplement your income or create a new stream of income. Buying or investing in a business is definitely a way to achieve this. There are many different approaches to investing into another business, from merely purchasing stock on the market to buying a business system outright. Then there is the middle ground where you can privately invest in a company and work out a specific deal or you can buy into a partnership. Please be careful and do your due diligence. Investments don’t need to be large, and sometimes the more expensive something is doesn’t mean it’s better.